860H.00/1417
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Assistant Secretary of State (Berle)
The Yugoslav Minister came in, at his request.
Although he nominally wished to talk about the Slovene question, his real purpose was to discuss the meeting that Elmer Davis had called with the Yugoslav editors some days ago.28 That meeting had been called for the purpose of telling the various parties to the squabbles between the Serbs and the Croats and the Communists that they must cease quarreling. The Minister really wished to thresh over the problem a little.
I told him that he was well aware of what had happened and I thought would hardly disagree with it. These were not foreigners. They were Americans. They had been indulging quarrels which might have a historic basis, but were certainly of no help in the prevailing war effort. The Srbobran29 had tried to justify their violence by blaming the Communists—which of course did not assist matters. Both Elmer Davis and I had said impartially to all hands that we had not the remotest interest in this kind of quarrel and that it was a danger to the American war effort.
I said that, as he knew, I had made it perfectly clear that the elevation of the Yugoslav Legation to an Embassy was not a personal tribute to an individual, and still less to any political party within Yugoslavia, but was a tribute to the nation in its gallant resistance. The Minister said that this was their point of view, likewise, and that [Page 819] he would resent any other significance being given to it. He said that he hoped to be of use in the situation.
I did not comment on this, but said that while we had a free press here, plainly, if it began to interfere with the war effort or give aid and comfort to the enemy, something had to be done about it, and for that reason I hoped the warning given by Mr. Davis would be heeded.
I pointed out that while we had been rather pointed in our observations about the Srbobran, we had been equally pointed in saying that we wanted attacks on General Mihailovich to stop.
The Minister observed that the Communists had not stopped their attacks on General Mihailovich.